With the ever-increasing influx of automation in the manufacturing industry, the process of prioritizing accurate measurements is needed now more than ever to ensure that products are not only being manufactured on time, but that production is repeatedly accurate. In this continuous, rapid-paced environment, time is becoming an even more valuable commodity, making the time-saving information provided by dimensional inspection an increasing necessity.

Among the challenges faced by the healthcare sector is a population that is growing older. The elderly population is expected to grow significantly over the next 20 years. Having an independent lifestyle is highly desired by elderly people, but independence for older adults often comes with high risks. Many smart home technologies have been developed to track and monitor activities of the elderly at home and assist their independent living. Buildings and urban environments fitted out with sensor networks offer the elderly the chance to retain their independence for longer. Wearable sensor technologies can also play a major role.

At St. Jude Medical, ventricle assist devices are developed to improve the lives of patients with heart failure. Numerical simulation is used throughout the design process to characterize diverse concurrent aspects of the design, from thermal effects and fluid dynamics to power transfer.

When bringing new medical equipment or portable mobile medical devices to market, manufacturers turn to packaging engineers to develop custom case solutions that can enhance and protect their products.

By partnering with case manufacturers utilizing the latest in 3D CAD technology, packaging engineers have a variety of materials to choose from—including plastic, wood, composite, or aluminum. Additionally, they can choose from a variety of standardized case options or design highly customized cases for today’s state-of- the-art medical devices. Case companies, such as Pelican Products, offer a comprehensive selection of choices to the packaging engineer.

Medical device manufacturers operate in a challenging environment filled with stringent regulatory requirements and industry pressures. With a rise in mainstream competitors from the consumer electronics space and an uptake of touch-screen interfaces and wireless connectivity, medical device manufacturers must develop increasingly complex devices in timelines that are more typical of consumer-grade electronics, but difficult to meet in a regulated industry.

Imagine moving an object using only your mind. Software company Unique Logic’s Time on Task exercise makes that feat possible, at least on a computer screen. The game, which is designed to teach people how to sustain their attention in order to complete tasks, involves getting a forklift operator to transport a stack of crates from the ground onto the back of a big rig. It doesn’t seem like a particularly interesting plot, except for the fact that, instead of using a remote control to dictate the action, you’re using your concentration—measured by sensors that detect patterns of brainwave activity—to induce the operator to complete the job.

On April 10, NASA released more than 1,000 codes in a new online software catalog. Organized into 15 broad categories, the new catalog offers a wide variety of applications for use by industry, academia, other government agencies, and the general public.

A newborn is diagnosed with a
heart condition called hypoplastic
left heart syndrome in which
the left ventricle of the heart is severely
underdeveloped, and requires immediate
surgery. While there are different surgical
options to consider, parents and
doctors face a daunting decision of selecting
the best procedure, as each poses its
own unique benefits and risks. However,
today’s advanced technology, like simulation,
allow doctors to virtually “clone” the
newborn, create an accurate computer
model of its heart, run several virtual surgeries,
and determine the best type of
implantable device in order to determine
the outcome of each protocol and select
the safest option for actual surgery.

The demand for joint replacement surgery is mushrooming
and, along with it, the demand for replacement joints that
endure longer with less maintenance.

Younger people who expect to be physically active later in life
are driving much of the growth in joint replacement surgery.
Their demands put a heavier burden on replacement joint
manufacturers to design replacements that last longer without
requiring a second surgery (revision replacement) or repairing
an implanted joint. Revision replacement procedures are
expensive and physically taxing for patients. They also raise
insurers’ expenses, which inflates overall medical costs.

Ateam of researchers in the Interdisciplinary Division of Biomedical Engineering (BME) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) say that they have created the world’s first brain training device, which can detect brainwaves, and use them to control the movement of limbs paralyzed from stroke, or to even control a robotic hand based on its sophisticated algorithm.

MDB Digital Magazine

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MDB - INSIDE STORY

Christopher Scott

To find out more about the expertise that Eurofins brings to this area, and the company's plans for expansion into the United States, Medical Device Briefs recently spoke with Christopher Scott, vice president of Eurofins Medical Device Testing.